AKI After RCC Surgery On the Rise

Nearly 6% of patients who underwent partial or radical nephrectomy between 1998 and 2010 developed AKI.

Rates of acute kidney injury (AKI) following partial or radical nephrectomy for renal cell carcinoma (RCC) are increasing, according to researchers.

Using the Nationwide Inpatient Sample, Marianne Schmid, MD, Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston, and colleagues, studied 253,046 patients who underwent partial nephrectomy (PN) or radical nephrectomy (RN) from January 1998 to December 2010. AKI developed in 5.5% of the patients (3,525 PN patients and 14,303 RN patients), the researchers reported online ahead of print in Urologic Oncology. AKI rates increased significantly from 2.0% in 1998 to 10.4% in 2010.

Additionally, results showed that postoperative AKI during hospitalization was associated with increased rates of any complications and transfusion, an increased rate of in-hospital mortality, prolonged length of stay, and higher hospital costs.